The National Aquarium – also known as National Aquarium in Baltimore and formerly known as Baltimore Aquarium – is a non-profit public aquarium located at 501 East Pratt Street on Pier 3 in the Inner Harbor area of downtown Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States. Constructed during a period of urban renewal in Baltimore, the aquarium opened on August 8, 1981. The aquarium has an annual attendance of 1.5 million visitors and is the largest tourist attraction in the State of Maryland. The aquarium holds more than 2,200,000 US gallons (8,300,000 l) of water and has more than 17,000 specimens representing over 750 species. The National Aquarium’s mission is to inspire the conservation of the world’s aquatic treasures. The aquarium’s stated vision is to confront pressing issues facing global aquatic habitats through pioneering science, protection, and educational programming.
The National Aquarium houses exhibits, including the Upland Tropical Rain Forest, a multiple-story Atlantic Coral Reef, an open ocean shark tank, and Australia: Wild Extremes, which won the “Best Exhibit” award from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums in 2008. The aquarium also has a 4D Immersion Theater. The aquarium opened a marine mammal pavilion on the adjacent south end of Pier 4 in 1990 and currently holds six Atlantic bottlenose dolphins. Of the six, five were born at the National Aquarium; one was taken at another American aquarium. In 2003, the National Aquarium and the much older and independent National Aquarium in Washington, D.C., allied to operate as a single National Aquarium with two sites. This arrangement continued until 2013, when the Washington location closed permanently. EZ Bed Bug Exterminator Baltimore
Exhibits
Pier 3 Pavilion
This building contains five levels or floors accessible via escalator and elevator except to guests with strollers. Guests with toddlers must carry them on their person. Each floor possesses several exhibits that communicate a central theme. This building also houses two large tanks, one of which simulates an Atlantic coral reef and one that affects the open ocean.
Level 1: Blacktip Reef
OriginallyInitially, it was a marine mammal exhibit with bottlenose dolphins from the Gulf of Mexico and beluga whales, but when Pier 4 opened, the animals were moved there. Subsequently, that area became an exhibit called Wings in the Water – which included several species of stingray and Calypso the turtle, until 2013, when it became Blacktip Reef. This 265,000-US-gallon (1,000,000 l) habitat, replicating an Indo-Pacific reef landscape (living corals are exhibited elsewhere in the National Aquarium), can be seen from many vantage points, including a new floor-to-ceiling pop-out viewing window. It contains 69 species, including blacktip reef sharks, emperor angelfish, harlequin tusk fish, humphead wrasse, reticulate whip ray, spotted unicornfish, tasseled wobbegong, and zebra shark. One of the largest animals in the exhibit was Calypso, a 500-pound green sea turtle rescued off the shore of Long Island in 2000. Her left front flipper had become infected and required amputation to save her life. Calypso was introduced into Blacktip Reef in July 2013 and died in February 2020.
Address: 501 E Pratt St, Baltimore, MD
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